PARIS, JANUARY 1, 2017: (DGW) Acting President Yemi Osinbajo has lashed out at the Nigeria Police and the judges for unlawful detention of suspects that have been granted bail by the law courts.

He made the remark in Lagos at the Eko Convention Center which was well attended by a good number of dignitaries.

A visibly angry, Yemi Osinbajo, a professor of Law, reportedly accused the Nigeria Police of exceeding their legal powers by consistently flouting court orders which, he said, is legally wrong.

He questioned the rationale behind keeping suspects in detention without being charged to court or who have been duly granted bail.

He frowned on keeping as much as 47,000 suspects in prison custody across the country without trial.

According to him, “As of 2017, we have 47,229 ‘unsentenced’ detainees awaiting trial out of a total prison population of 67,586.

“It may interest you to know that Lagos State has the highest number of unsentenced detainees in Nigeria.

“We agree that these problems are against our collective interests as practitioners and stakeholders.

“We must make a firm commitment to tackle the problems by changing our attitude and standing up for what is right,” he said.

Acting President Osinbajo particularly criticized the police for still keeping the likes of former National Security Adviser, Col Sambo Dasuki (rtd), the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu and El-Zakzaky who have been ordered for release by Nigerian courts of competent jurisdiction.

A general court martial (GCM) of the Nigerian Army, has sentenced Hassan Adamu, a lance corporal, to seven years imprisonment, after finding him guilty of manslaughter.

Olusegun Adeniyi, a brigadier general, announced the sentence at a sitting in Maiduguri, Borno state capital, on Wednesday.

Adamu, a driver, was said to have shot one Umar Alka to death, following a disagreement at the Monday market in Maiduguri.

The tragic incident was said to have occurred on December 23, 2015.

Witnesses, who testified in the proceedings, told the tribunal that the deceased died on the spot after Adamu shot him.

Abubakar Abacha, father of the Alka, told the tribunal that he received a distress call that a soldier killed his son on the said date.

Abacha added that he arrived the scene and found corpse of his son, with deep hole passing through his chest.

He said the deceased lived a good life.

In his ruling, Adeniyi said Adamu had been found guilty.

“Having found you guilty of the offence of manslaughter and having listened to the plea by the defence counsel, looking at the punishment provided by sections 105 and 119 of the armed forces Act cap A20, laws of the federation, the court, hereby, sentences you to seven years imprisonment,” Adeniyi held.

“The sentence is, however, subject to confirmation by the confirmation authority as provided by Section 152 sub-paragraph 1A of the Armed Forces Act.”

Popular Nigerian singer Tuface Idibia, has vowed to proceed with his planned nationwide protest against the Federal Government on Feb. 5 in spite of mixed reactions by some Nigerians.

2baba, as he is fondly called by fans, made his stand known on his Facebook page on Wednesday.

According to him, the protest will go on as planned since it is meant to tell Nigerian leaders the need to ‘connect with the people’.

He said: “I will not keep quiet. I’m just a musician with a point of view and the ear of my fans.

“I have dedicated my time and resources to peace building, voter’s education towards peaceful elections and youth engagement in governance in Nigeria.

“This match is about demanding that our leaders connect with all the people of Nigeria.”

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the ‘African Queen’ crooner had earlier in January announced his intention to lead a nationwide protest against the current Federal Government.
He noted that many “Nigerians, especially the youths, were languishing in poverty with little to be hopeful for about the future.”

However, the call by Tuface to protest against the government was welcomed with mixed reactions.

While many of his fans, politicians and artistes alike, said the protest was timely and necessary, others said it was ill-conceived and politically motivated.

Some of his fellow artistes noted that they would not be available for the protest, while others frowned at it in strict terms.

While some celebrities like, Burna Boy, Davido and Alibaba are in support, others like comedian Bovi, actress Funke Adesanya said otherwise.

Also, former ‘Plantashun Boiz’ member Blackface, who had not been in goo terms g with his former band mate, Tuface, is apparently not in support of the Feb. 5 protest.

However, Tuface has remained undeterred saying “it is just a peaceful protest aimed at demanding answers from the government over different issues in the country.”

PARIS, FEBRUARY 1, 2017: (DGW) THE United nations has expressed outrage at the attack on a UN monitoring team that left no fewer than five people dead near the Nigeria-Cameroon border, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) has reported.

The UN envoy for West Africa and the Sahel, Mohamed Chambas, in a statement, called on both Nigeria and Cameroon to take swift action to bring the perpetrators to justice.

“According to preliminary reports, at around 14:00 hours, yesterday (Tuesday), an unknown armed group attacked a UN Technical Monitoring Team, killing five individuals – a UN independent contractor, three Nigerians nationals and one Cameroonian national – and injuring several others.

“The team was conducting a field mission in the vicinity of Hosere Jongbi, near Kontcha, Cameroon, about 700 kilometres north of the capital Yaoundé, as part of the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission mandate,” he said.

Chambas reiterated the vital role of the Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission in accomplishing the border demarcation.

According to him, this is in compliance with a judgment of the International Court of Justice, and in contributing to stability and security in the region.

The UN envoy also offered his condolences to the families of those killed in the attack and wished a speedy recovery to those injured.

The Cameroon-Nigeria Mixed Commission was established by the UN Secretary-General at the request of Presidents of Cameroon and Nigeria, in 2002, to settle border disputes between the two West African neighbours.

The Mixed Commission’s mandate includes demarcation of the land boundary and delimitation of the maritime boundary between the two countries.

It also includes the withdrawal of troops and transfer of authority in the Lake Chad area, along the land boundary and in the Bakassi Peninsula.

Addressing the situation of populations affected by the demarcation activities and development of recommendations on confidence-building measures aiming at promoting peaceful cross-border cooperation, is also one of the mandates of the commission. (NAN)

PARIS, JANUARY 1, 2016: (DGW) President Muhammadu Buhari has reiterated his pledge fulfil his electoral promises to Nigerians. He made this pledge in his New Year message adding that the comfort in the State House has not in any way estrange him from the people who voted him into power.

Reassuring Nigerians the President said he is not unaware of the pains Nigerians are have been passing through for the past seven months that he is been working to put things in place, a move that will profit all and sundry in the long run.

The difficulties, he assured Nigerians, were only but temporary adding that 2016 will be much more different, His New Year message covered a wide range of issues and challenges plaguing Nigeria.

Said the President, “Welcome to the beginning of a New Year of the continuation of change in our beloved nation. I am aware that Nigerians have experienced a number of significant hardships over the past months. Living in the State House has not alienated me from your daily sufferings. I am aware of the lengthy queues at fuel stations and of the difficulties businesses have faced in acquiring foreign exchange. These challenges are only temporary; we are working to make things better.

“When I presented myself to you as a presidential candidate and asked you to vote for me, I wanted to be a leader who keeps his promises. I wanted to be a leader who restores the people’s hope in those elected to serve them. I wanted to be a leader who initiates positive and enduring change.

“I am still totally committed to being that kind of leader. Unforeseen circumstances and other distractions notwithstanding, I shall still do my utmost best to keep every promise I made to Nigerians during my election campaign.

“In the past seven months since our inauguration on May 29, 2015, my administration has focused on laying the right foundation for the change you voted for during our historic presidential election.

“Nigerians will in due course begin to enjoy the fruits of all our ongoing work. The effective and efficient implementation of our 2016 budget proposals will address many of the socio-economic issues that are of current concern to our people.

War on terror

“One area in which Nigerians, especially those in the northeast, have already begun to experience major change is in the war on terror.

“I commend our Armed Forces for significantly curtailing the insurgency which has ravaged the northeast of Nigeria over the past few years.

“However, there is still a lot of work to be done in the area of security. Our Armed Forces will maintain, consolidate and build on their successes in the war against Boko Haram and violent extremism.

“This government will not consider the matter concluded until the terrorists have been completely routed and normalcy restored to all parts of the country that have been adversely affected by the Boko Haram insurgency.

On corruption

“Our crackdown on corruption will continue to be vigorously undertaken. I urge the courts to support our efforts and help in the recovery of stolen funds by speedily concluding trials and showing that impunity no longer has a place in our country.

“There is much work to do in other areas as well and I have charged all my ministers and other appointees to ensure that Nigerians experience positive changes in their lives in 2016.

“We must reduce our country’s reliance on oil. We must diversify our economy. And we must do all we can to promote job creation.

“Our challenges are many but our determination to succeed is strong and unshaken.

PARIS, JANUARY 1, 2016: (DGW) A Human Rights Group under the umbrella of Foundation for Human Rights and Anti-Corruption Crusade has cautioned the President Muhammadu Buhari and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC) to tread the path with caution regarding Tompolo's refusal to honour the invitation by the Nigeria's anti-graft body, the EFCC.

Tompolo, the group by its national president Alaowei Cleric, said in a statement has not committed any offence and advised the EFCC against overstepping the bounds of its authority since Tompolo was already in court with the commission. The president said everyone knows what is on the ground and advised the EFCC to desist from actions that will further heat up the polity and cause another round of devastating chaos in the country.

In a copy of the statement made available to our reporter the national president said “The subsequent arraignment of Tompolo over some trumped-up charges is a political witch-hunt by agents of the Federal Government. The action of the anti-graft agency can be best described as a ploy to use the government’s institutions to carry out political execution of their perceived enemies.

“In critical assessment of the EFCC’s motives in carrying out this provocative act, we can infer that the commission has already convicted its assailant without trial, a practice not known in our jurisprudence. The EFCC, as a responsible anti-graft agency, should rather ensure that justice is done in any given case''.